January 13, 2011

City Council resolution on undocumented workers

The City Council passed a resolution today calling on the federal government to stop deporting people who belong to families in which there are members of "mixed status."

The resolution says undocumented workers should not be deported if they have family members who are U.S. citizens, or children who would be eligible for citizenship under the stalled federal "Dream Act."

During a City Hall news conference, U.S. Army reservist Hector Nunez talked about how his wife, Rosa, was deported for six months after they took steps to legalize her immigration status.

While the Nunez family was eventually reunited, Ald. Roberto Maldonado, 26th, said President Barack Obama's administration continues aggressive deportation policies that break families apart.

"This is supposed to be a friend of the Latino community? This is the president that promised the Latino community and the immigrant community that he was going to send a bill for immigration reform within the his first 90 days of his administration," Maldonado said.

All 50 aldermen on the Chicago City Council had to file paperwork earlier this year detailing their outside income and gifts. The Tribune took that ethics paperwork and posted the information here for you to see. You can search by ward number or alderman's last name.

The Cook County Assessor's office has put together lists of projected median property tax bills for all suburban towns and city neighborhoods. We've posted them for you to get a look at who's paying more and who's paying less.

Past posts

Clout has a special meaning in Chicago, where it can be a noun, a verb or an adjective. This exercise of political influence in a uniquely Chicago style was chronicled in the Tribune cartoon "Clout Street" in the early 1980s. Clout Street, the blog, offers an inside look at the politics practiced from Chicago's City Hall to the Statehouse in Springfield, through the eyes of the Tribune's political and government reporters.